As 2024 comes to a close, it feels like the perfect moment to pause and celebrate the year’s most inspiring, innovative, and masterfully crafted cinematic achievements. This list is a reflection of my ten favorite films from this year—though it’s worth noting that it’s very much a living document. Despite my best efforts, I have yet to see highly anticipated titles such as The Substance, Queer, Babygirl, or The Brutalist, each of which seems like a strong contender for this list. But isn’t life, like cinema, always a work in progress? With that in mind, here are my top ten films of 2024.
DUNE: PART TWO
Denis Villeneuve is undeniably a masterful filmmaker, yet I must admit I found myself slightly underwhelmed by the first installment of his adaptation of Frank Herbert’s Dune. While the massive scale of his and Greig Fraser’s visual work was undeniable, Hans Zimmer’s bone-rattling score was unforgettable, and the cast was exceptional, Dune: Part One never quite rose beyond its awe-inspiring opening act for me.
Imagine my surprise, then, when I realized that screenwriter Eric Roth had cleverly reserved the most compelling material for Dune: Part Two. Essentially, Part One serves as an elaborate prologue, carefully laying the foundation for the magnum opus sci-fi epic that follows. The payoff is immense. Everything about this sequel surpasses its predecessor—Villeneuve crafts an intellectual blockbuster that succeeds on every level, delivering a cinematic experience that is as thrilling as it is profound.
THE FIRST OMEN
In a landscape dominated by serialization and franchise-building for the sake of “content,” Arkasha Stevenson emerged this year as a rare auteur with a meticulously crafted and uniquely unsettling vision of horror. With The First Omen, Stevenson resisted the temptation to rely on broad, easy scares. Instead, she delivered a film that pays authentic homage to the specific subgenre of atmospheric dread that inspired the original Omen.
This prequel is a grand-scale nightmare, unfolding with chilling precision as it ties the existential fears of the late 1960s to modern-day anxieties. The result is a film that not only honors its roots but has grown increasingly relevant and haunting in the months since its release.
TRAP
The best movie of M. Night Shyamalan’s career. Sayombhu Mukdeeprom’s cinematography is astounding. Josh Hartnett gives an all-timer performance. The third act of the film trades in Shyamalan’s trademark narrative twisting for something much more nuanced, emotional, and cathartic. Trap may not be for everyone, but Trap is very much for me.
LOVE LIES BLEEDING
Rose Glass’ sophomore feature, Love Lies Bleeding, is an intoxicating mix of romance, drama, comedy, thriller, and 1950s atomic dread monster movie. Kristen Stewart and Katy O’Brian deliver mesmerizing performances in the lead roles, pulling you into their complex, fiery world. Glass’ direction, Mark Towns’ sharp editing, and Clint Mansell’s haunting score come together in perfect harmony, creating a cinematic experience that’s impossible to look away from. Simply put, Love Lies Bleeding absolutely slays.
FURIOSA
It’s almost unbelievable that we got a George Miller-directed Mad Max film this year, only for it to be met with such indifference. But in my view, Furiosa is nothing short of miraculous. Miller completely transcends cinematic influences, crafting a deeply literary, even Biblical epic from his own wildly imaginative creations. The film not only immerses us further into the painstakingly detailed worlds first seen in Fury Road, but also charts entirely new and thrilling courses within it. Anya Taylor-Joy delivers an exceptional performance as the titular character, while Chris Hemsworth absolutely transforms as the villainous Dementus. In a few years, Furiosa will no doubt receive the acclaim it rightfully deserves.
MEGALOPOLIS
Francis Ford Coppola returned to large-scale filmmaking this year with a passion project he had spent decades trying to get off the ground and eventually just funded entirely himself. The result is Megalopolis, one of the most absolutely insane films of the year and a profoundly moving and deeply insightful epitaph of sorts to the legendary auteur’s entire body of work. I’ve probably spent more time thinking about Megalopolis than any other film this year, because to see Coppola’s latest film is to be swallowed whole by it. An utterly insane and surprisingly affecting film that is so wholly Coppola’s own.
KINDS OF KINDNESS
Just months after the release of Poor Things—my number-one film of last year and an Academy Award-winner—Yorgos Lanthimos and the creative team behind it managed to top themselves with something even stranger, even more alienating to mainstream audiences, and undeniably hilarious. Kinds of Kindness is a pitch-black comedy in three acts that feels like an unholy blend of Rod Serling’s Twilight Zone and a series of Franz Kafka short stories. Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, and Willem Dafoe each deliver three completely distinct performances, with every one of them being nothing short of astounding.
NOSFERATU
Robert Eggers’ long-anticipated Nosferatu is nothing short of a symphonic cinematic triumph. Following his previous works like The Witch, The Lighthouse, and The Northman, Eggers takes his craft to new heights with a vision that is both unnervingly disorienting and deeply innovative. This adaptation of the classic horror tale is as invasive as it is captivating, blending nightmarish terror with Eggers’ signature style. Yet, in a surprising twist, Nosferatu also stands as his most widely accessible and audience-pleasing film to date. With a compelling narrative, rich thematic work, and standout performances from Lily-Rose Depp, Nicholas Hoult, and a nearly unrecognizable Bill Skarsgård, Eggers has crafted a deeply intelligent, articulate adaptation of one of horror’s greatest stories.
CHALLENGERS
What is there to say about Luca Guadagnino’s remarkable film that has not already been said? In my initial review of the film, I wrote that it did for tennis what Scorsese’s Raging Bull did for boxing. And today, I stand by that more than ever. Challengers is a big, character-driven drama full of standout performances and some of the most singularly exciting and visceral visual work I’ve seen in a theater this year. Phenomenal stuff.
ANORA
Sean Baker’s Anora is nothing short of a masterpiece, and I cannot recommend it enough. Roger Ebert once described movies as “a machine that generates empathy,” and few filmmakers embody this concept more effectively than Baker. His previous works (Tangerine, The Florida Project, Red Rocket) have consistently explored the struggles of underrepresented or stigmatized characters, and Anora is his crowning achievement. It’s an obscenely well-crafted film, side-splittingly funny, and gut-wrenchingly affecting all at once. The entire cast delivers remarkable performances, with particular praise going to Yuriy Borisov, whose portrayal of Igor is the quietest and most reactive in the film. Mikey Madison’s portrayal of the titular dancer is an absolute tour de force. For anyone who appreciates empathetic storytelling at its finest, Anora is an essential watch.
